I didn't know Grandma Nora, but I watched my own mom grieve her death. Often during my early childhood Mom would be teary and talk about how very much she missed her momma.
From reading my mom's diary recently I learned that Grandma Nora was a great source of strength to my family. And I know that Grandma was a strong believer in Jesus and a Baptist through and through. She prayed. Though she lived to be 80 it wasn't long enough to see a lot of results from her prayers for her family. I hope she knows that her prayers have made a difference. Her prayers planted seeds. It took some time for the seeds she planted in the hearts of her family to germinate. But yes, Grandma Nora, your prayers have made a difference to your children and future generations. In His time.
Time.... of the waiting variety:
I have vivid memories of sitting in the car with Dad and my sister Sharon, the engine running, waiting to head out to some important event. What were we waiting for? Mom. Probably standing in the house, looking in the mirror wishing her hair would cooperate. Or applying lipstick at the last minute. Wasting time, according to one man in particular.
Dad did not like to be late, but he knew that hurrying Mom along was futile. Even counter-productive. Hmmm. I am my mom. 😜
Time.... of the swift passing variety:
I was 37 years old when my mother passed away. During the first few hours after she passed I distinctly recall thinking, almost in panic mode, "Wait a minute!! That happened too fast. How could 37 years have gone so fast? I'm not through with this part of my life yet. It can't be over" I felt like a little girl still needing to hold my mom's hand. Oddly enough until that moment I wasn't aware I still needed my mom's hand to hold. I was well into adulthood, just assuming that I had everything under control, life was good. All was going according to what I had always planned. But one short moment in time changed that. One last breath from the woman who loved me more than any other human being ever would.
Time... of the anticipating variety:
Now retirement, the golden years, are up ahead and we can see those years approaching quickly. We are so very excited for the time we expect to spend together. We're enjoying making lists of things we want to do, places we want to go. But I've also lived long enough to know that it's best to hold on to your own plans and dreams lightly. Both of our fathers' lives were cut short and the "golden years" of retirement just didn't happen.
Time... of the hopeful variety:
There's a very good chance that we could live for a few more.....decades! We're both in pretty good health. My father's mom was 98 when she passed and my husband's grandma was in her 90's. But even if we live to be 112? You could add up all the days any one of us live and it would be equal to a quick snap of the fingers compared to the days between the beginning of time (creation) and all of eternity.
Time... of the beautiful variety:
A few weeks ago we took a trip to Orlando Florida with our oldest daughter and son-in-law and the two oldest grandchildren. Disney was the destination. It was such a fun trip, making so many memories! On the final day at Magic Kingdom, we stayed for grand finale which is a fireworks display at the Magic Kingdom Castle. Though we were truly exhausted from three days of Disney, the amazing, magical, stunning transformation of the castle was the pinnacle of our time there. Worth the wait.
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| Pictures can't begin to capture the magic! |
As we were watching the magical display it was easy to be just totally overwhelmed and stunned by the beauty of it all. Just blown away by the creative engineering and man-made design of Disney.
In the grand finale of that fireworks show, a thought came to me and I feel certain I know the source of that thought. It was like God was saying to me, "Oh my dear girl you ain't seen nothing yet. The beauty of Heaven will make this seem like just a fizzled firecracker."
And I looked around at the crowd of thousands watching this show with their wide eyes and oooohs and aaaahs. In that group of thousands, one will be the next person from that particular collection of humanity to come face to face with their Maker. And see the real show.... for the rest of eternity. Forever.
I looked at faces and wondered if they know about the brevity of their time here and the reality of eternity. I want them to know about Jesus and heaven, and the love that caused God to sacrifice His Son in order to make their eternity in heaven a possibility.
The things of this world, both good and bad, can consume us. We get caught up in how good life is, we get caught up in how awful life is. We forget how short life really is.
We all need a Savior. We all need the hope of Heaven. We all will spend far far more time in eternity than we ever spent living on earth. Please be ready.
Like Grandma Nora, I find myself planting seeds of prayers. Faith tells me those seeds will continue to germinate and grow. Hope is leading me to believe that one day my faith will become sight. And there will be a glorious reunion in heaven.
When time will be no more.
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